VOLUME 9 ISSUE 6
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WWW.NSJONLINE.COM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3, 2024
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BRIEF this week
Simmons picked as NCGOP chairman Selma The North Carolina Republican Party’s Executive Committee elected Jason Simmons as state chairman last week, choosing the party’s executive director to succeed Michael Whatley after he was elevated to lead the Republican National Committee in early March. Simmons beat Lee County party Chairman Jim Womack by a more than 2-to-1 margin in the vote, a party spokesperson said. Simmons had received an endorsement for the job from former President Donald Trump, who had made Whatley — who had resigned from his state chairman’s position earlier in the day — his handpicked choice to succeed longtime RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel. Simmons worked as state director on Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign in North Carolina and oversaw Trump campaign operations in some Southeast states in 2020.
BRANDON WADE / AP PHOTO
NC State’s Ben Middlebrooks holds up the South Regional trophy after the Wolfpack beat Duke 76-64 on Sunday in Dallas to advance to the Final Four.
Red letter day: NC State makes it to Final Four
Krispy Kreme embraces solar eclipse Charlotte More and more businesses are taking advantage of the total solar eclipse set to dim skies across North America next week. In the snacks department alone, Krispy Kreme is embracing Monday’s solar eclipse as a marketing opportunity In 2017, the last time the U.S. saw a big slice of a total solar eclipse, scores of companies used the event for special promotions — including Krispy Kreme. The Charlottebased company previously rolled out limited-edition chocolate glazed doughnuts for the 2017 eclipse, and those treats have made a few returns since. But that might not be the case for this year’s “Total Solar Eclipse Doughnut.” The Krispy Kreme-Oreo combo is set to be available from Friday through Monday, according to an announcement from the chain this week.
Hospitals must now obtain written consent for pelvic exams Washington, D.C. New federal guidance says hospitals must obtain written informed consent from patients before subjecting them to pelvic exams and exams of other sensitive areas — especially if an exam will be done while the patient is unconscious. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says consent is needed for exams that are for “educational and training purposes.” Federal regulations previously mentioned obtaining consent for “important tasks” related to surgeries.
The Wolfpack ended a 41-year drought and is two wins in Arizona away from a title
Federal appeals court won’t force redrawing of NC Senate districts The plaintiffs accused the legislature of violating the Voting Rights Act By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press RALEIGH — A federal appeals court declined Thursday to order North Carolina legislators to redraw some state Senate districts, rejecting arguments that clear evidence has been presented showing Republican manipulation of boundaries means black voters there are prevented from electing their favored candidates. In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, upheld a trial court judge’s decision in January that refused to issue a preliminary injunction preventing the use of two Senate districts and to order the General Assembly to redraw them. Two black voters who sued in November contend that the GOP-controlled legislature violated the Voting Rights Act last fall by fracturing a politically cohesive unit known as the “Black Belt” region when it redrew the two northeastern districts. U.S. District Judge James Dever had decided in part that lawyers for the voters had not
shown that voting in close to 20 counites was racially polarized at legally significant levels to justify new districts. And Dever said it was too late in the 2024 election cycle — legislative primaries were held March 5 — to order new lines, citing a legal principle discouraging voting-rule changes close to elections. When the three circuit judges heard oral arguments last month, two sounded hesitant to reverse Dever, including Circuit Judge Allison Rushing, who wrote Thursday’s majority opinion. It’s possible the voters can accumulate evidence for a trial that shows the Voting Rights Act was violated and a majority-minority district should be created in the area, she said. “But the standard for winning relief before trial ... while elections are underway is high indeed, and Plaintiffs have not satisfied it with the record they have developed thus far,” Rushing wrote. Circuit Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson joined in her opinion. Circuit Judge Roger Gregory, writing a dissenting opinion, said Dever misconstrued the legal standard to determine a Voting Rights Act violation, See DISTRICTS, page A2
By Shawn Krest North State Journal
DALLAS — There was Spud Webb and Staats Battle and Cat Barber and Scooter Sherrill. Welcome back. And Rodney Purvis and Chris Washburn and Dennis Smith. It’s been a while. NC State has played 1,231 basketball games over the last 41 years. Including overtimes, that’s 49,630 minutes of basketball. Over what would be 34½ days of end-to-end, nonstop basketball, 233 men have suited up for the Wolfpack. And Tom Gugliotta and Charles Shackleford and Todd See FINAL FOUR, page A3 Fuller and Chucky Brown.
HOWARD LAO / AP PHOTO
Twice as nice! NC State’s women’s basketball made history of its own over the weekend, reaching its second Final Four by beating Texas to win the Portland 4 Regional. Read more on B1.
Student parking fees put up roadblock to busing solution Some districts only charge $25 while Wake charges $200 By A.P. Dillon North State Journal
IMAGE COURTESY NCLEG.GOV
A federal appeals court ruled it would not force the North Carolina legislature to redraw its state Senate districts.
On Sunday night, 16 of them did what their 217 predecessors in the red and white could not — they cut down the nets to signify a spot in college basketball’s Final Four. And Migjen Bakalli and Omer Yurtseven and Lakista McCuller. The Wolfpack did it by playing nine must-win games over 19 days, the most recent one a 76-64 win over Duke that sent State to the final weekend of the college basketball season. Land that only four teams get to tread. “Nine elimination games or you go home,” said coach Kevin Keatts, who, for nearly half of those nine games, had more at risk than just going home since there was a good chance the school would be sending him on his way to find a new home elsewhere.
RALEIGH — At a time when districts across the country and in North Carolina have experienced mild to severe school bus driver shortages, offering affordable parking for students who drive themselves to school could help address some dis-
tricts’ busing issues. However, student parking rates differ wildly across North Carolina and no district appears to charge staff See PARKING, page A2
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